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Summary French Revolution essay plans
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A* essay plans on the French Revolution based on the OCR History A level specification
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French Revolution (20 marker plans)1. To what extent was France ready for revolution by 1789?
Theme 1: Economic
Financial crisis made France ready for revolution
Food riot, high food prices and bread riots
Assembly of notable in 1787- led to estates general which saw to the erosion of monarchical power
Failure of Louis ministers to address economic crisis- calonne, turgot and necker
Theme 2: Social
Enlightenment made France ready for revolution
Thinkers such as Voltaire, Rosseau, John Locke etc
Salons- discussions beyond that of the rigid ancien regime structures began to surface
Science, freedom, liberty etc all became heavily discussed ideals- key influence in people being
discontent with the rigid structure of France
Theme 3: Political
The failures of Louis and the monarchy- extravagant spending, disinterest in anything political
The poor structuring of the ancien regime; the estates system, Louis’ failure to respond to the
bourgeoisie and their demands
Failure of financial ministers- assembly of notables in 1787
Séance royale- poor decision making on Louis’ behalf
Calls for constitutional monarchy as a result of Enlightenment and the ineptitude of Louis
2. How important were financial problems of the Crown in bringing about the French
Revolution in 1789?
Theme 1: Political
Theme 2: Social
Theme 3: Economic
3. To what extent can the Storming of the Bastille be seen as the start point of Revolution?
Theme 1: Political
Theme 2: Social
Theme 3: Economic
4. Assess the reasons for the start of Revolution in 1789
Intro: to assess the reason for the start of revolution in 1789 it is important to appreciate what
conditions were needed for revolution to begin; crippling economic issues that would force the poor
out on to the streets and the creation of an impoverished under class that would have nothing left to
lose. Moreover, an authority with no ability to control them and revolution became the only viable
answer. Ultimately it was the economic issues that were the most important reason as to why the
French Revolution began in 1789
Theme 1: Political reasons
There was a range of political reasons that provoked revolution in France 1789
The poor governance of Louis, despite being an absolute ruler, Louis showed little interest in
governing France, he lived 20 miles south of Paris in the splendour of the Palace of Versailles and
although he spent little time amongst the people, he was expected to make all decision on their
behalf
Furthermore, France was a patchwork of different forms of political administration, different laws
and systems spread across France yet was governed by one individual, never one solution to any
problem in the system, continued to be very outdated and insufficient
,These politics issues helped foster the conditions where revolutionary fervour would grow. The
assembly of Notables, called in 1787, demonstrated the Kings inability to govern effectively- his
handpicked 144 nobles rebelled against him and Calonne, he was then forced to call the estates
general which is widely regarded as marking the beginning of revolution as the King had severely
diluted his monarchical powers in attempts to address economic issues
Reaction of the King to assembly of notables further demonstrates his inability to govern and led to
calls for shared power- Séance royale, disband of parlements, resistance in Grenoble
As well as the inefficiency governance of the King, one must also appreciate the unbalanced and
unfair political system which France was renowned for prior to 1789. Political opinion and activism
was banned and even though the Jacobins and Coredelier clubs only formed after the start of
revolution, there was still huge amounts of political opposition present in France before revolution
officially began. Indeed, the likes of Marat and Danton were pivotal, through their oratory skills and
writings, in inspiring a starving nation into rebellion
These growing political movements alongside the poor leadership of the monarchy created an an
atmosphere of discontent with the ancien regime and created a desire for reform; thus were key
reason in bring about the french rev in 1789.
Theme 2: Social reasons
It wasn’t just political issues that prompted revolution to occur in 1789, social issues were also
fundamental in the breakdown of the King’s authority. Most significantly, the outdated social
structure of the Ancien Regime served to incite an angry populace who were eager for a dramatic
change e.g. nobles=2%, peasants=80% yet they had the same amount of land
The discontented bourgeoisie as a result of the ancien regime formed the basis for the emergence of
enlightened ideas in France. They desired greater impact over society yet found it frustrating that
they were still subjected to high taxation and did not enjoy the privileges of the higher class- this is
clearly seen to be a cause for revolution in 1789 as demonstrated by the tennis court oath of June
1789 which established the National Assembly and the desire for constitutional monarchy
Great fear of July 1789 also served to show that the peasants held the class system and the nobility
in particular in deep contempt- destroyed swaths of chateaux in the provinces which is indicative of
the deep-seated anger that the third estate had towards the inherently unequal system in which
France hinged upon
Alongside the outdated social structure, the Enlightenment played a key role in starting revolution.
Writings from Rousseau and Voltaire began a wave of Anti-Clericalism and Anti-privilege
Josphers sieyes pamphlet “Qu’est-ce que le tiers-etat? In January 1789 had such an impact on the
creation of the National Assembly and gave those literate members of the third estate a clause to
incite change (complex and intellectual ideas of the enlightenment were also not restricted to the
salons and bourgeoisie, ideas were made simpler and used to incite mob action)
Indeed, the Jacobin club and its infamous leader Robespierre were hugely influenced by the
enlightenment. The content of the cashiers writer prior to the estates general also suggested a clear
desire amongst the people for enlightened reform.
Clearly social issues played a key role in bringing about revolution in 1789
Theme 3: Economic reasons
Poor taxation system that France had during the Ancien regime- system was not only corrupt but
also inefficient, the first and second estates were exempt from paying tax- meaning that a great
amount of money was locked up the system. These problems led to revolution because it forced the
third estate to seek reform as demonstrated by the 1789 cashiers which demanded fairer taxes and
the push for the calling of the estates general; of all of which was a prerequisite to the breakout of
violent action in July 1789
, Failures to deal with the financial crisis symbolised the failure of the social system in France to
modernise and the ineptitude of the crown, in particular Louis and his ministers. ECONOMIC ISSUES=
significant push factor for revolution
Their irritation of paying taxes like the gazelle and Taille as well as being subjected to forced labour
of the Corvee was shown as they pressed for an estates general by 1788
Clear that the mounting debt also exacerbated the situation and made revolution occur by 1789-
with debt at 112 million livres by 1787 (worsened by the American War of Independence of 1776),
Louis XVI was forced to attempt a number of ways of raising revenue. A long list of inconsistent and
incompetent controller generals added to the plight of the nation; Turgot was unable to pass
legislation through Parlements, Necker borrowed ruinously and falsified the royal accounts in the
Compte Rendu of 1781 and Calonne called the Assembly of Notables which failed miserably in trying
to push tax reform. All these three finance ministers only served to add to the debt of France and
the contentious financial crisis, which inadvertently caused food prices to rise and further discontent
for the masses of France. An angry, impoverished, unequally treated underclass had been created-
clearly showing why, economically, the French Revolution began in 1789.
Conclusion: overall, the French Revolution began in 1789 due to a number of reasons. Economic,
social and political factors allowed discontent to grow from a mere ripple to a tidal wave of
discontent by July 1789. The conditions for revolution were present; food shortages, political
mismanagement and a population with nothing left to lose with an authority unable to contain them
– revolution was the only answer. Although all were significant, the common denominator that
linked all these reasons together was the economic strife. This exposed Louis’ poor decision-making
as well as displayed the unfairness of the Ancien Regime and created the Sans-Culottes. The
economic reasons were most crucial of many reasons as to why the French Revolution began in
1789.
5. How successful were the policies of Louis’ finance ministers in slowing down revolution
between 1776-1789?
Introduction: In regards to the slowing down of Revolution between 1776-1789, Louis’ finance
ministers were largely unsuccessful and were often seen to exacerbate economic discontent rather
than help resolve the issue. Given that the actions of the finance ministers were key to the calling of
the estates general of 1789, it is hard to argue that they did not have a contributing role in the
emergence of revolution and the political and social change that followed. However, some would
argue that their reforms did in fact help prevent revolution from having occurred earlier and were
seen to make some advances in solving the financial crisis. Thus, the extent to which the policies of
Louis’ finance ministers in slowing down revolution between 1776-1789 were successful will be
analysed through looking at their impact socially, economically and politically. Ultimately, the one
aim that underpinned the policies of Louis’ finance ministers was solving the financial crisis, of which
none of them did, and thus Louis ministers can be regarded as a main cause for revolution breaking
out in 1789.
Theme 1: Social- How was revolution slowed down? Ministers vs other factors
One could argue that socially, the policies of Louis’ finance ministers had little impact on the slowing
down of revolution
Calonne served as controller general of finances from 1783 to 1787, his sole aim was to redress the
financial crisis which was impeding the social rights of many citizens (such as poor housing, lack of
good, unemployment). his actions did slow down revolution, as he indeed suggested a land tax
which had the hopes of replacing the existing tax system bound to feudal privilege. He also proposed
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